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JAPAN
May 25, 2002

LDP weighs law to close Diet loophole

The government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party decided Friday to consider legislation that would force Diet members who are elected as a party's proportional representation candidate to step down if they leave their party, LDP Secretary General Taku Yamasaki said.
COMMENTARY
May 23, 2002

U.S. idiosyncrasies on Cuba, free trade

LOS ANGELES -- Undoubtedly, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's red-carpet reception in Cuba rubbed President George W. Bush the wrong way.
COMMENTARY / JAPAN IN THE GLOBAL ERA
May 20, 2002

Parochialism produces few world leaders

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Following the appearance of one of the recent articles in this series on Japan in the global era, a colleague of mine, Dominique Turpin, who has been doing research on Japanese industry for some 20 years, came into my office and said, "Jean-Pierre, when are you going to start...
COMMENTARY
May 15, 2002

EU's costly quest for world leadership

LONDON -- Nowadays the European Union and the United States seem to be locked in almost permanent quarrels. One moment it's bananas, then it's steel, land mines, the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, European defense arrangements and NATO. Then it's the question of whether there should be a permanent...
JAPAN
May 11, 2002

Personal information bill endangers privacy, press: LDP politician

A government-sponsored bill to protect personal information, which critics fear would threaten freedom of the press, is more likely aimed at protecting bureaucrats rather than individual members of the public, according to a Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker who has openly criticized the legislation....
JAPAN
May 11, 2002

Prison term sought for ex-lawmaker

Prosecutors on Friday sought a three-year prison term for former Upper House lawmaker Takao Koyama, who is accused of accepting 31.6 million yen in bribes from the mutual-aid foundation KSD between 1996 and 2000.
JAPAN
May 11, 2002

Opposition to push for Suzuki vote

Four opposition parties have agreed to pressure the ruling bloc into calling a Diet vote on Tuesday over a non-binding motion urging beleaguered lawmaker Muneo Suzuki to resign from the House of Representatives.
JAPAN
May 5, 2002

Suicide victim left terrorist attack details

A man who died after setting himself on fire in Tokyo's Hibiya Park on March 30 left a memo detailing plans for a terrorist attack carried out in 1972, sources said Saturday.
JAPAN
May 2, 2002

Bid-rigging scandal entangles engineering firm

As the investigation continues into the suspected bid-rigging case involving the top aide to Lower House member Muneo Suzuki, prosecutors now believe that the initiative for the scheme was taken by a Tokyo-based engineering firm.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 28, 2002

Stars & strikes: a revolution from above

Just 18 months after surrendering in the Pacific War, more than 3 million people throughout Japan were preparing to bring the shattered, hungry nation to a standstill.
JAPAN
Apr 20, 2002

Upper House president quits

The president of the House of Councilors tendered his resignation Friday to take responsibility for an alleged payoff scandal in which his policy secretary reportedly received 64 million yen in connection with a public works project.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 19, 2002

Dwellers bought off; ball to fall on Aoyama flats

The ivy-covered Dojyunkai Apartments in Tokyo's Aoyama district have long been a popular landmark along Omote-sando boulevard. Although the antiquated buildings add a serene touch to the fashionable, bustling district, efforts to protect the site from redevelopment into a shopping complex have so far...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CLOSE NEIGHBORS
Apr 18, 2002

Grassroots ties aim to bypass diplomatic gridlock

One click on a mouse turns the hankul characters on an Internet chat site into a Japanese message of welcome, delighting elderly Japanese participants in an online exchange with some of their South Korean counterparts.
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2002

Japan considering creation of East Asia free-trade area before 2010

Japan is considering establishing an East Asia free-trade zone well ahead of 2010, Japanese trade ministry officials said Saturday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Apr 14, 2002

Pop stars set an example for us all

The permanent five-day school week that goes into effect this month has given rise to a great deal of discussion in the government and the media as to whether or not Japan can afford to cut back on classroom time. This discussion, however, has not addressed the question of what education is supposed...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 12, 2002

Women's group helps foster friendships

NARA -- Noriko Yamaue, 58, did not enjoy her first trip abroad.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
Apr 12, 2002

The man who gave the JET program liftoff

The JET program marks its 15th anniversary this year. Today the country's largest teacher-exchange program, it all started from the simple dream of a young British banker called Nicolas Maclean.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 11, 2002

Vested-interest policymakers irked over report that pulls few punches

Lawmakers within the ruling coalition were left aghast by a scathing report submitted last week by a panel investigating the government's handling of mad cow disease.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 11, 2002

Threat of new Iraqi war has neighboring Turkey on edge

ANKARA -- At his shop in the ancient citadel of this busy capital city, Satilimish Sutchuoglu and three fellow carpet sellers gather to drink tea and trade forecasts of economic doom.
JAPAN
Apr 10, 2002

Lower House approves Kato's resignation

The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved the resignation of scandal-tainted Koichi Kato.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Apr 10, 2002

Total eclipse of the art

In a residential area close to the bright lights and buzz of Shibuya, a fascinating theatrical experiment is taking place at the Agora Theater in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 2002

Suzuki used hostage case to increase his influence

House of Representatives lawmaker Muneo Suzuki instructed a Foreign Ministry official to secretly make contact with Afghanistan's Taliban regime in 1999, in an effort to secure the release of four Japanese engineers who had been abducted by Islamic rebels in Kyrgyzstan that summer, it was learned Saturday....
JAPAN
Apr 6, 2002

LDP to probe Tanaka over weeklies' charges

The Liberal Democratic Party said Friday it will launch an investigation Monday into allegations that LDP member Makiko Tanaka pocketed part of her secretaries' salaries paid from government coffers.
JAPAN
Apr 4, 2002

White powder sent to Tsujimoto

OSAKA -- A letter containing a white powdery substance was delivered Tuesday to the office of scandal-tainted former lawmaker Kiyomi Tsujimoto in Takatsuki, Osaka Prefecture, police said.
BUSINESS
Apr 4, 2002

Lobby groups set merger timetable

The Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Osaka Industrial Association agreed Wednesday to draw up a concrete merger plan by the end of June, officials of the two groups said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2002

Beijing's WTO entry seen as start of Asia 'axis of virtue'

SINGAPORE -- China's entrance into the World Trade Organization does not represent a threat to the economic well-being of either Japan or the ASEAN countries. Rather, it marks the beginning of an axis of virtue in East and Southeast Asia and trade and investment opportunities for all.

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building